[bobcat20]

Todat I decided to check sparkplug tightness on my 2014 ridge with 20k miles -I know -way early but after reading many post on ridgeline, pilot, odyessy, mdx etc sites I became concerned as many people have had loose plugs at all different mileages (some as low as 30k) and many have had plugs blow out with serious engine damage. Anyway if you remove 2 phillips head screws holding cooling fan back cover then that cover can be pivoted in either direction which allows you to easily remove coils and then access plugs. Unfortunately getting tose 2 phillips head screws out may be tough- on mine both heads immediately deformed due to really cheap,soft metal of screw heads so it took me about 30 min to get them out using visegrips on threaded part and a variety of pliers on screw heads -i exchanged them for hex head screws so next time it will be quick and easy. So checking all plugs takes only about 20min once you can pivot this fan plate -rear ones are done mostly by feel but there is plenty of room so its pretty easy. Mine were all tight -I didnt check torque as I didnt want to disturb them if they were still tight as they were. I will be checking them now probably every oil chg or two as consequences of loose plug are so serious.

 

[Cashr22]

Question , why would you do it when you RL is still under full factory warranty. That why you have a warranty, you paid for it why not let them check?


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[eurban]

The dealer isn't going to check plug tightness under warranty simply because you asked them to. They would only do so as a result of an obvious problem or if they were told to by Honda (like in a recall or TSB etc). I'm sure they would do it if you paid them to . . . .

 

[bobcat20]

I agree dealer is not going to want to do that under warranty, and Dealers are the last place I would go for any work unless I was desperate, they are way overpriced (you have to pay for fancy showrooms etc and lots of dead weight) they generally have service advisors who have never worked on a car, their mechanics are under a lot of time pressure so cant do a slow careful job. As far as checking sparkplugs they are likely to lie about it -so it is easy to do yourself and you will know its been done and done right and it is pretty important to know they are tight so why would you leave that to someone you cant really trust?

 

[Cashr22]

I can not believe all the RL owners that do not trust the Honda dealer but they drive a Honda I trust mine and if I did not I would not have bought a vehicle that says HONDA on it. LOL to each his own.


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[speedlever]

Cashr22, dealers are independent of Honda. They simply contract with Honda to sell and maintain the vehicles. Some dealers are better than others. These are not factory stores.

bobcat20, I did not have to move the fan on my 2008 when I checked my plugs (all were tight). But the clearance on #4 was pretty tight. Fortunately, there's enough play in the radiator to make it work.

 

[bobcat20]

speedlever - I didnt actually move the fan just the little metal cover on back of it - maybe yours does not have this cover -I think they may have changed radiator fan setup on 09 and later -not sure but it seems as many people can just flex radiator on pre 09 - I tried that on mine but no way.

 

[bobcat20]

cashr22 - I am sure there are some good mechanics at most dealers but you have no say on who will be working on your car at any dealer which means it a bit of a crap shoot on whether or not you will get one of the more experienced mechanics or a novice or a quality repair.Dealerships in general put a lot on pressure on their employees to produce max profit in minimum time through their general management policies -this pressure does not help a mechanic produce a quality repair. These policies are the norm at any dealer not honda in particular. If you dont work on your own car I would advise finding a small local mechanic with a good rep to do none warranty work as he will have a stronger incentive to do a good job and will cost less.

 

[eurban]

Whether the dealer is competent is secondary. They are not simply going to do a free spark plug tightness check on his truck just because he asked them too. They will need more reason than that the collective experience / wisdom of the ROC forum advises that it is a good idea. It is most definitely a DIY or pay someone to do it thing.

That said, my local Honda dealers have given me plenty of reasons to avoid them unless absolutely necessary - Expensive parts, expensive labor, poorly informed, and work not done correctly on the first / second / third try. . . .

The Ridgeline is an excellent Honda vehicle even though there are plenty of Bozos selling and servicing it.